Step 1: Click "New diary entry"
The button lives in the top-right of the diary header.
On desktop it reads New diary entry.
On mobile it's a compact New button in the same place.
If the day has no entries yet, the empty-state card in the middle of the page also has an Add diary entry button.
The overflow (⋯) menu has Add diary entry too.
Note — There is no "type-and-go" inline composer. Every entry is opened in the editor first. That's deliberate — diary entries are a legal record, and the editor's confirm-before-save flow makes accidental empty entries impossible.
Step 2: Pick the entry type (when the chooser shows)
If photo uploads are enabled for the area, clicking the New button opens a small dialog titled New diary entry with two cards:
Write an entry — opens the rich-text editor.
Upload a photo — opens the photo entry dialog. On mobile this triggers the device camera/library picker automatically. See Photo entries.
If you already have an unsaved draft for the day, a banner at the top of the chooser says Resume your unsaved draft with the time you last edited.
Note — If your realm has photo uploads disabled (
Disable image uploadin diary configuration), the chooser is skipped and the editor opens straight away.
Step 3: Write in the editor slideover
The editor opens as a right-side slideover (wide panel — about half the screen on desktop). At the top, a primary-coloured bar shows the title:
New Diary entry for [area name] on [day, date] at [time]Fields:
One content field — labelled "Your diary entry". A TipTap rich-text editor: bold, italics, lists, headings, links, images (paste or drag), tables. There is no title field — diary entries don't have per-entry titles.
Template — if your realm has set a default template, it pre-fills the editor. Edit or delete it as you go.
Tab-to-autocomplete (AI realms only) — at the end of a sentence, press Tab once to autocomplete, twice to confirm.
Step 4: Save
Add diary entry (primary, bottom right) — submits the entry.
Cancel (plain text button) — closes the slideover.
Clicking Add diary entry opens a confirmation dialog: "Confirm your diary entry — Are you sure you want to add this diary entry to [area]?" with Cancel and Confirm buttons.
Note — The confirmation dialog is deliberate — once submitted, an entry can't be edited by you. Take the half-second to re-read before confirming.
Step 5: What happens after save
In Timeline mode (multiple entries per day): your entry appears as a new card at its time slot.
In Single-card mode: your entry becomes the latest revision of the day's card.
In both modes: the entry is timestamped with your name. Other staff with access see it immediately.
What good entries look like
What happened — concrete, in order.
Who was involved — staff, other supported people, family, professionals.
When — exact times if relevant.
Follow-up actions — what you did, what you escalated, what needs picking up next shift.
Any concerns — note them clearly so the next shift sees them straight away.
Tip — Write entries as close to the event as you can. The longer the gap, the more detail you lose. If you witness a notifiable incident (safeguarding, fall, medication error), also log the appropriate form.